Harry Potter and the Dungeon of Dread
by JohnDeere92
Summary: Harry and his friends get special training and Harry finds out new skills. I suck at summaries so please R&R!
1. Chapter 1

**Harry Potter and the Dungeon of Dread**

**Chapter 1-A Very Bad Summer**

Everyone in the town of Manchester knew about Morgan Lechey. He was a Frenchman, who fought in the French Resistance during WWII. He had moved to Manchester when his rich uncle had died, as he was the sole heir to the vast fortune. The Lechey family had lived in Manchester since its beginning. Morgan lived alone in the huge mansion, and never left it. His cook was the only one who ever left the house, and he only left to buy food.

On this night, as every night, Morgan was sitting in his study, staring at the same strange book he had been studying for 10 years. He had found it in the library of the mansion, behind a hidden panel. It was written in a cryptic language which he could not decipher. He had spent thousands on the world's best cryptographers, but none had been able to crack it. So every night, Morgan sat in his study, staring at the strange book, in the hope that it would reveal its secrets to him.

The book had become something of an obsession to him. All of his waking hours were spent puzzling over its message, and his dreams were consumed with it. Some thought him mad. The maid and cook avoided him as best they could, and only saw him occasionally. But he didn't care. All he needed was the book, and he was content. He couldn't bear the thought of parting with it.

Suddenly, a cry pierced the still night. It was the maid. _She must have found a spider_, he thought, and turned his attention back to the book. Then, another scream pierced the night, this time much closer. It sounded like the cook. _What would the cook have to scream about_, he mused. Again, he turned his attention back to the book.

Suddenly, the doors of the study burst open, to reveal two dark figures. One had snake-like red eyes, and the other followed him obediently. It was at that moment that he noticed something very peculiar about them. They were carrying sticks in their hands. They stopped some feet from him. The red eyed one spoke.

"Give me that book, old man," he hissed.

"M-my book?" he stuttered. "What on earth do you want with my book?"

"That is none of your concern," he answered back. "All that matters is that I want it, and Lord Voldemort always gets what he wants. Now give me the book, muggle, before you go the same way as your cook and maid."

"What's that you're calling me? Muggle? And what have you done to my maid and cook?" he demanded.

"Your maid and cook are dead. You will soon join them if you don't give up that book," he replied.

"You still haven't answered my question," said Morgan. "What in blazes is a muggle?"

"A muggle is a person who does not possess magic. You clearly do not, as you cannot read that book to which you so desperately cling. Give it to me now, or know what it is to feel true pain," said Voldemort.

"I'm a soldier," replied Morgan defiantly. "I've dealt with pain before."

Voldemort raised his wand. "Crucio!" he cried. The old man fell to the floor, writhing in agony. Voldemort lifted the curse. "Are you going to give me the book, old man, or shall I kill you now?" he asked.

The old man stood up. "The only way you're getting this book," he said, "is if you pry it from my cold, dead, fingers."

"So be it," replied Voldemort. He raised his wand again. "Avada Kedavra," he muttered. The old man was dead before he hit the floor.

Miles away, Harry Potter awoke with a start. He instinctively raised his hand to the lightning shaped scar on his forehead. It burned beneath his fingers as though someone had pressed a red-hot coal to his forehead. He had been dreaming, he knew, but about what he couldn't remember. There had been three people; an old man, Voldemort, and someone else, who he assumed was the traitor, Wormtail. But what had they been doing?

Harry decided that he needed to take a walk. Normally, he would turn to Sirius after something like this, but Sirius was gone now. He might have written to his friends as well, but they hadn't sent him a letter all summer. He was starting to get worried. So he grabbed his father's invisibility cloak, and headed out the door, careful not to disturb the Dursleys.

As he went out the door, he felt the cool night breeze on his face. It felt good. It was in sharp contrast to the weather they had been receiving. The summer heat was unbearable, almost as bad as last summer. Harry looked up, and could clearly see the stars in the sky. That was an unusual sight indeed. One did not usually see the stars in England.

Harry Potter was not a normal child by anyone's standard. To those who lived on Privet Drive, he was an orphan who went to St. Brutus's Center for Incurably Criminal Boys. He was a misfit, and a stranger not welcomed by anyone. To the world Harry called home, the wizarding world, he was just as strange. He bore a lightning shaped scar on his forehead, courtesy of the evil Lord Voldemort, the most feared wizard in history. Lord Voldemort had killed Harry's parents, and countless others, all for his attempt at global domination. He met his end, however, the night he killed Harry's parents. For as soon as he cursed Harry, the spell rebounded on him, and almost destroyed him.

Harry continued to walk, thinking mostly depressing thoughts. His godfather had died, he thought, all because of him. If he had just practiced Occlumency with Snape, it never would have happened. _Why_, he thought, _did I have to be such an idiot? Why couldn't I have just practiced, and thought everything through, instead of endangering all of my friends. Friends_, he thought. They had all almost died, and it was because of him. He still remembered the terror he felt as he saw Hermione fall to the ground, stricken by an unknown curse, and thought to be dead. He also would never forget the feeling of relief that washed over him as Neville told him that she was still alive.

There was also the anger he felt at Dumbledore. It was Dumbledore, admittedly, that had caused the entire problem. Had he told Harry everything, taught him himself, and just given him some damn information, none of it would have happened. Just the thought of Dumbledore was enough to make Harry want to break something.

And then there was the prophecy: "…and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives…" Plain and simple, Harry would either kill or be killed by Voldemort. One way or another, he would become murderer or victim. He had yet to tell his friends this. They had enough to worry about, he thought, without that knowledge.

Right now, there were only two things keeping Harry alive. One was his thoughts of Hermione. The kiss she gave him at King's Cross had awakened feelings for her that he never knew existed. He realized that he loved her more than anything. There was only one problem. If he told her how he felt, and she didn't feel the same way, he was afraid that it would break their friendship, and he needed that more than anything. He was also afraid for her if she did return his feelings. He knew that Voldemort would find out, and he knew that when he did, he would try to use her to get to him. And when his thoughts finally led to that, as they always did, he worked out. Though he didn't know it, he had become quite attractive.

Harry had still yet to hear from Dumbledore, and it had been almost two weeks. He couldn't stand being in the dark like this, and always for his "protection". He hadn't heard from Ron or Hermione either, and he was starting to get worried and depressed. It wasn't like his friends to forget about him, especially at a time like this.

Harry rounded a street corner. Dudley was over at one of his gang member's house. That was the main reason Harry had grabbed his invisibility cloak. If Dudley's gang caught sight of him, he was as good as dead. He knew that they would like nothing more than to beat the pulp out of him for existing.

As he approached an alley, Harry heard shouting from inside. He slowed his walk, and crouched down. He reached into his front pocket for his wand (Moody had taught him not to carry it his back pocket) and readied himself for a fight. He carefully looked around the corner, and saw a group of people beating up a figure lying prone on the ground. Harry assumed it was Dudley's gang, and he was ticked.

"Get the hell away from him!" he yelled.

They all looked behind them, but couldn't see Harry, as he had the invisibility cloak on. "Wh-who's there?" asked one of them.

"I'm your worst nightmare," replied Harry. "And if you don't get out of here, I'm going to make sure your mothers cry when they find you." He felt that that last comment was kind of cheesy, but it had the desired effect. They were tripping over themselves to get out of that alley. When Harry entered to figure out who their victim was, he found…Dudley. He walked over to him and knelt beside him.

"Dudley," he asked, "what happened." Dudley moaned in response. He seemed to be in pretty bad shape. "Can you move?" he asked. Again, he got no response. "We've got to get you home," he said finally. He circled an arm around his cousin, and heaved him to his feet. He was reminded of the time last summer, when he had had to drag Dudley home after the dementor attack.

Finally, they made it home. Harry opened the door, and dragged Dudley into the living room, and deposited him on the coach. "I'll go get Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia," he said. He walked up the stairs, and stopped at his Aunt and Uncle's bedroom. He knew that there would be hell to pay for waking them, but Dudley's condition was much more important. He knocked on the door.

"Uncle Vernon," he said. "Aunt Petunia, get up. Dudley's been hurt. You need to come downstairs. They didn't move. Harry tried the door. It was locked. He knocked again, but still got no response. Harry backed up, and rammed his shoulder into the door. He did it again. Finally, he heard someone get out of bed. Uncle Vernon tore open the door. He grabbed Harry around the shoulders.

"What is the meaning of this!" he bellowed. "Your aunt and I are trying to get some sleep!"

"It's Dudley," he said. "He's hurt." At this, Aunt Petunia paled. She followed Harry downstairs to the living room. When she saw Dudley bruised and bloodied, she ran over to him, crying.

"My poor darling baby, what happened to you?" she wailed. "Have you been mugged? Who did this to you?"

Dudley didn't answer. "I think he needs to go to the hospital," said Harry. With that, they loaded into the family vehicle, and tore off to the hospital.

After a couple of hours at the hospital, the doctor came in to the waiting room. Aunt Petunia jumped to her feet. "What's wrong with him, doctor? Will he be okay?" she asked worriedly.

The doctor raised his hand. "Whoa, Mrs. Dursley, slow down. Yes, your son will be fine. He has several cracked ribs and a slight concussion. He'll need to be in the hospital for another week or so."

"Has he spoken yet, doctor?" asked Petunia.

"No," he answered, "but that's probably due to the pain killers. He'll probably be up and about in an hour. But you can come see him now. Follow me."

Harry, Vernon, and Petunia got up and followed the doctor back to the room where they were keeping Dudley. He was sound asleep. He had two black eyes, and his lips were busted. They all pulled up chairs next to his bed. Aunt Petunia held his hand. After about thirty minutes, his eyes fluttered open.

"Hey Dudley," said Harry.

"How do you feel, sweetkins?" asked Petunia.

"Kinda dizzy," he replied.

"What happened to you, son?" asked Vernon

"Well, me and my gang were walking around the neighborhood. We started arguing, and then a fight broke out. Everyone else was against me. They beat me up and left me in the alley," he replied.

"Who was it that beat you up, son? We'll get them," said Vernon.

"I don't want to tell you. I'm tired of being the cry baby," he said. At that comment, a strange feeling crept over Harry. It was…pride. Yes, he was proud of his cousin. After over a decade and a half of whining to his father when he didn't get his way, he was taking it like a man.

"How long am I going to be here?" asked Dudley.

"About a week, son," replied Vernon.

"Oh, no!" said Dudley. "I'm going to miss the first match of the boxing tournament. If I don't win that, I have to win all of my other games!"

"I'm sorry, sweetkins, but the doctor said that you have to stay. You don't want to injure yourself more, do you?" replied Petunia.

Now Harry felt truly sorry for his cousin. Not only had he been beaten into a pulp, he was being punished for it too. It just didn't seem fair. Then, Harry had an idea. He decided to keep it quiet, though, until Dudley was out of the hospital.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2-Summer at St. Mungo's**

After another four days, Dudley was released from the hospital without any limitations. He was completely fine. He even had permission to start boxing again. Harry woke up that morning, grabbed a change of clothes, and showered quickly.

As he reentered his room, he saw Hedwig sitting on his bed with a letter tied around her leg.

"What have you got there, girl?" he said. She hooted at him and stuck out her leg. He relieved her of her package, and looked at the envelope. It was from Hermione! He tore it open hastily and read:

Hey Harry, how are you. I hope your summer has been going well. I know mine has. We're visiting France again this year, but this time we're in southern France, along the Mediterranean. It's beautiful here. I really wish you could have come with us. Speaking of which, the reason I wrote you was to see if you could come and visit me at my house.

Harry's heart dropped. He knew the Order would never let him out of the house, especially after the events of last year. It really stunk, god what he wouldn't give to get out of this house.

Don't worry, it's already been cleared by Dumbledore and the Order. Write me back if you want to come. If so we'll pick you up in about a week. Hope to see you soon.

Love and Friendship always,

Hermione

Harry smiled to himself. She knew him way too well. He grabbed a piece of parchment from his desk, and hastily wrote his reply:

Hey Hermione, I'm fine. Man, what I wouldn't give to be with you on that beach and out of this house. Speaking of which, of course I'd like to come visit you. I can't wait. How about you come on Sunday around 1:00? See you then.

Sincerely,

Harry

Harry stuck the letter in an envelope, and called Hedwig over to him. "Hey, take this to Hermione, ok?" She hooted and, Harry gave her an owl treat before she flew out of the window. He then went to talk to Dudley.

"Hey, Dudley," he said, knocking on his cousin's door, "it's Harry. Can I come in?"

"Sure," he replied blandly. He had been in a sour mood since he had figured out he was going to have to miss the first boxing match. Harry entered his cousin's room.

"Hey, I had an idea," he said. "Since you missed the first match of the year, you have to win the rest of them, right?" he asked. Dudley nodded. "Well, if you want, I can help you get in shape for your matches."

Dudley brightened instantly. "Yeah, that'd be great," he said. "Oh, and Harry," he said as Harry turned to leave, "thanks for saving me."

"Anytime," he answered happily.

Harry was in such a good mood, he forgot to clear his mind before going to bed that night. Then the dreams came.

Harry was standing on the same steps he had been standing on in the Department of Mysteries. He saw Sirius battling with Belatrix Lestrange. Then almost in slow motion, Harry saw Sirius get hit with a spell. He arched almost gracefully in the air, and came down right through the veil, oblivious to Harry's screams.

"Sirius, No! NO!" he sobbed.

"Harry, Harry, wake up!" he heard someone cry. He got up. He noticed that he was drenched in sweat. He looked up to see the concerned face of Dudley. "Are you all right?" asked Dudley.

Then the dream came back to him. He curled up in his bed, and turned away from Dudley. "Go away," he muttered. Dudley didn't move.

"Who's Sirius?" asked Dudley.

"What?" came Harry's reply. "How do you know about Sirius?"

"You've been having nightmares about him almost every other day since you got back. I've heard you scream his name in your sleep at least a dozen times now," said Dudley.

Harry shuddered again. "Go away," he said. "I don't want to talk about it." Dudley sighed disappointedly, and got up to leave. Harry got up, and grabbed Dudley by the arm. "Sit down," he said. "Sorry, I know you only want to help, but it's hard to talk about."

"Sirius was my godfather. He was one of my dad's best friends. One of his other friends betrayed him to Voldemort. That's why my dad's dead. And then Sirius….Sirius died at the end of the year." Harry choked back a sob. "Sirius is dead, and it's all my fault." Tears were streaming down his face by this point. "If I would have listened to my friends, he would still be alive."

Harry lay back down, and cried into his pillow. He felt Dudley's hand on his shoulder. "You'll be all right," he said. Then he got up and left.

Harry awoke the next day after a night of blissfully dreamless sleep. He dressed and showered quickly, and went downstairs. He found Dudley already dressed, and that he had already eaten breakfast. Harry hurriedly ate his breakfast. "Hey Dudley," he said, "fancy a jog?"

"Sure," he replied. They got up from the table and went out the front door. They ran a couple of times around the neighborhood. By the time they got back to the house, Dudley was ready to collapse, and collapse he did, right in the front yard. Harry sat down next to him.

"Well," he said, "that was a good warm-up." At this, Dudley blanched. Harry laughed to himself. "Okay, no more running," he conceded, "but we still have a lot more to do." They then went down to the basement, where Dudley had installed the punching bag he had received on his last birthday.

For about the next hour, Dudley punched at that bag until he couldn't lift his arms. "Okay, Dudley," said Harry, "you're doing pretty well. Now you have to jump-rope for fifteen minutes, and then you can take a break." Dudley sighed, but knew he had to do it if he wanted to win the boxing championship again.

The next week passed in much the same manner. By the end of the week, Dudley was almost able to keep up with Harry on their morning jogs. Harry was pretty confident in Dudley's ability to win the championship, as long as he kept with Harry's workout schedule.

Harry as usual, awoke the next day to the sound of Uncle Vernon screaming at him from downstairs. He tried to ignore it, but that only made him shout louder.

"Harry Potter," he yelled, "if you don't get down here right this instant, you'll get no food for a week."

"Okay, okay," he muttered, "I'm coming."

He quickly got dressed and walked downstairs to find Uncle Vernon purple with rage. Harry almost laughed at the sight of him, but stopped, knowing that it would only get him more work. He took a seat next to Dudley, and covertly flashed him a smile. Dudley returned it. Harry went to work on his rather small breakfast, and finished quickly.

"You'll be putting mulch down in the flower beds today, and it had better be done quickly, because I've got a lot more work for you to do today," said Uncle Vernon.

Harry nodded his agreement. Arguing, he knew, would only get him in trouble. Not to mention the fact that it gave him something to do. As Harry got up to leave, Dudley spoke up. "I'll help you, Harry," he said. Vernon looked at him with a strange look on his face, but said nothing.

About an hour later, a dirty, sweaty, and exhausted Dudley and Harry pulled themselves onto the stoop to rest. Harry was really proud of his cousin. Dudley had lost a lot of weight and was now much leaner and more muscular.

Harry couldn't even attempt to sleep that night. He was just too nervous. _This is stupid_ he thought. _It's just Hermione. Why am I getting so nervous about meeting her? I've been alone with her loads of times. Why should this time be so different?_ Harry never did manage to get to sleep. He just sat up the entire night thinking of Hermione, and what would happen tomorrow. He glanced up at the clock and groaned. It was only 6:30. He decided that there was nothing for it, so he grabbed a change of clothes and headed to the shower.

He emerged from the bathroom around seven. He stood in front of his mirror, and critiqued his appearance. He decided that he didn't look good in these clothes, so he changed. And then he changed again…and again…and again. Eventually he came to the realization that nothing in his wardrobe was decent, so he just lay down on his bed and waited for Hermione to show up. He was so nervous that he didn't eat breakfast, but by the time lunch rolled around, he was ravenous. Harry decided that there was no point in starving himself, so he ate.

He paced around the living room for about an hour after lunch. He looked up at the clock, and it read 1:00. Harry glanced out the window, and saw a brand new black Jaguar coming up the street. _Somebody got a raise_ he thought. But then the car pulled into the Dursley's driveway, and low and behold, out steps Hermione, followed quickly by her dad. The walked up the steps to the house and knocked on the door. Vernon waddled over to the door, and opened it angrily.

"We're not interes…" His eyes bugged out as he saw the expensive sports car sitting in his driveway.

"We're here to pick up Harry," said Hermione.

"Wh-who are you?" Vernon managed to stutter out.

"I'm a friend of Harry's from school. He's going to be spending the rest of the summer with me. Is he here, we really need to be going."

"No, please, stay," said Vernon as he regained his composure.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Dursley," said Hermione's dad. "We really do need to get going. Are you packed, Harry?" he asked.

Harry nodded and ran upstairs to grab his trunk. He didn't think that Mr. Granger would like having an owl in his car, so he told Hedgewig to meet him at the Granger's. He returned downstairs with his trunk.

"All set?" inquired Mr. Granger.

"Yes, sir," he replied. "Shall we be going?" Mr. Granger nodded. "Well, I guess I'll see you all next summer," he said to the Dursley's, and with that, he walked out the door. He walked behind Hermione, and couldn't help but notice how much she changed over the summer. She was definitely no longer a little girl. She had become a woman.

"Thanks for the ride Mr. Granger," said Harry as he jumped into the car.

"No problem, Harry," he replied. "Hermione's told us all about you. It's my honor, especially after all the ways you've protected my little girl." Harry blushed at this.

"Um, sir, why is Hermione driving?" he asked.

"Oh, that," said Mr. Granger. "Well, she has her learner's permit. I'm trying to teach her how to drive over the summer."

Harry had completely forgotten about that. Dudley had gotten his too, as well as a new car that he could use as soon as he turned 16. Harry spent the next hour talking to Mr. Granger, and sneaking glances at Hermione. He couldn't believe how good she looked. Hermione was totally focused on the road. She didn't notice Harry looking at her, or join in the conversation.

Soon, they pulled into the driveway of an enormous house. Harry couldn't stop gaping. He'd never seen a house like this. It was awesome and…unique. The only other muggle dwellings he'd ever seen were the identical houses of Little Whinging. When they entered the garage, Harry was sure he was going to dislocate his jaw. There were three more Jaguar's parked in the enormous garage(Mr. Granger liked to collect jaguars, even though he didn't drive most of them). It must have cost a small fortune.

Hermione smiled at Harry, and gently returned his jaw to the proper position. "Come on," she said. "Let's go inside."

"I don't know if that's a good idea. If the inside of the house is anything like what I've seen so far, I don't think my jaw will ever recover."

She just sighed and dragged him into the house. It was exactly what Harry had been afraid of. It was every bit as elaborate, and no doubt expensive, as everything else he'd seen. Once again, his jaw hit the floor. The Grangers just smiled at him as he admired everything in the house. Hermione had told them that he had never experienced any luxury, but this had them completely shocked. The poor boy looked like a kid in a candy shop.

"Hermione, why don't you take him up to his room?" suggested Mr. Granger. "I think Harry could stand some rest. I'll call you down when it's time for dinner."

Hermione took Harry up to his room. Once they were there, Harry recovered his voice.

"Wow, Hermione," he said. "This place is amazing."

"Yeah, its home," she said.

"Hey Hermione," he said.

"Ya," she replied.

"Thanks for inviting me. You have no idea how much this means to me. I don't think I could have spent another day in that house.

"It's no problem," she said. "I've really missed you this summer. Besides, my parents were really excited by the prospect of seeing the guy who saved their 'little girl' so many times."

They shared a laugh at this. "So, tell me about your summer," said Harry. "I'm really jealous. I've never really been anywhere."

"Well, I usually think about France as being full of mountains and snow, since that's usually what we do when we're there: ski. But it was so much different. We went to this beautiful hotel. If you think this house is something, your eyes would've bugged out of your head when you saw this hotel."

"And then we went to the beach. Oh my god, it was beautiful. White sand, sparkling surf, it was all there. We swam, we body surfed, and we even got to ride on some jet skis. They were loads of fun."

"It sounds incredible," said Harry. "You're dad seems really cool. Where's your mom?" he asked.

"Oh, she's still at the clinic," she replied. "You'll get to meet her at dinner. So, what do you want to do?"

"I don't know," he replied. "Honestly, I feel kind of overwhelmed at the moment. What kind of things do you usually do around here?"

"Well, we could watch TV, or maybe we could go swimming or sit in the hot tub," she suggested.

"Okay, swimming sounds like fun, but I don't have a swimsuit, I mean the Dursley's never really bought me clothes, let alone a swimsuit." he said.

"Oh, well I wonder if my Dad has any old ones that might fit you?" said Hermione. "DAD!" yelled Hermione.

"Yes, Dear?" called Mr. Granger.

"Do you happen to have any old swimsuits that might fit Harry?"

"Ya, they might be a little big but you can tighten up the strings and they should work perfect!"

Mr. Granger brought the suit up to Harry. Harry thanked him and went to put it on. "Fits perfect," said Harry.

"Great, I'll go get changed," she said. _Oh god, what have I done_ he thought. _How am I going to stand a couple of hours of Hermione in a bikini?_ He quickly shook those thoughts out of his mind. _Hermione's my best friend,_ he thought. _I shouldn't be thinking about her like that._ Harry quickly grabbed a towel and headed downstairs to meet up with Hermione. It was just as he had feared. She looked amazing in her swimsuit. Harry desperately searched his mind for something to calm himself down. Trelawney teaching Divination naked did the trick.

"Well, let's go," she said. He followed her to the backyard. The back of the house was every bit as spectacular as the rest. There was a four tiered deck leading down to an enormous pool at the bottom.

"I'll have to show you this place at night," she said. "There are neon lights in the pool. It looks really neat." Harry could only nod his agreement. He couldn't wait to get in the pool. It was just as hot here as it was back on Privet Drive, and that pool looked very inviting.

Harry and Hermione swam for about two hours, until they were both completely exhausted. They trudged back upstairs, showered, and decided to take a short nap before dinner.

Harry awoke from a restful sleep to find Hermione standing over him with an exasperated look on her face. "Harry Potter, I swear, you're as bad as Ron when it comes to being a heavy sleeper."

Harry just laughed. "It must be a teen guy thing," he said.

"Well, Mr. Teen Guy, it's time for dinner, so hurry and get washed up," she said. Harry hurried and got washed up for supper, and joined the Grangers downstairs. Harry was quickly greeted by Mrs. Granger.

"Hello, Harry, welcome to our home," she said.

"Thanks so much for inviting me Mrs. Granger,"

"Anytime, dear, but please, call me Jane," she said. "You've met my husband, Charles," she said, gesturing towards him. "And this is our daughter, Julie."

"Hello, Julie," he said. "I'm Harry."

"I know, Hermione's told me all about you," she said.

Dinner was incredible. Hermione's dad really knew how to cook. He made a dish that Harry had never heard of. He called it gumbo.

"When Jane and I went to a conference in New Orleans, Louisiana, we had gumbo the first night we were there. The style of cooking in that area is called Cajun. I liked it so much, I learned how to cook it."

"Well, sir," said Harry, "It's delicious."

When dinner was over, Mr. Granger called Harry over to him. "Well, Harry," he said. "I've got a bit of a surprise for you." He walked Harry into the garage. "Ok, Harry, which one of these cars is your favorite?" he asked.

Harry pondered the question a moment, and finally decided on the brand new, red, 2006 XK Jaguar. "You've got a good eye there," said Mr. Granger. "I don't normally take this thing out of the garage, but today we can make an exception." They walked over to the car. "Hop in," he said.

"You're kidding, right?" replied Harry.

"No, I'm serious," he said. "Hop in, and I'll take you for a spin."

Harry had never had more fun. Mr. Granger took him around town. Harry kind of enjoyed all the attention they were getting because of the car. They returned after about 30 minutes. After they got back, Hermione decided that it would be a good time to show Harry the pool at night.

"Wow, Hermione," he said. "This place is spectacular."

Harry went to sleep that night, completely content. So content, in fact, that he forgot to clear his mind again.

Hermione was in the next room, sleeping. That's when she heard Harry's moans. "Sirius! No!" She quietly tiptoed into Harry's room, only to Harry thrashing around on his bed. She placed her hand on his head, and he calmed down. "Harry, wake up," she said.

Slowly, Harry awoke. "Wha-what happened?" he asked.

"You were having a nightmare. Do you want to talk about it?" she asked.

"It's the same dream I have almost every night," he said. "I see Sirius falling through the veil, and there's nothing I can do to stop it. It's my fault Sirius is dead!"

"No, Harry, it's not. It's Bellatrix and Voldemort who killed him, not you," she replied.

"Ya, but if I had listened to you, Sirius never would have died. If I had practiced Occlumency, none of it would have happened. Ginny, and Neville, and Ron, and Luna, they all got hurt. And gods, Hermione, you almost died. I love you, and I couldn't live if I had caused you're death."

That last comment took them both by surprise. "Do you really mean that?" she asked.

Harry hung his head. "Yeah, I do," he answered. "But you and me can never be together," he continued. "Because then you would be a target."

"Harry, I'm already a target," she replied. "And I love you too. Now, get to sleep," she said, and with that, turned and went back to bed, leaving Harry to think about what had just happened.

After breakfast the next morning, Harry decided he had to talk to Hermione. "Hey, Hermione," he said. "Do you wanna go for a walk?"

"Sure," she answered.

They walked in silence for a few moments, before Harry finally spoke up. "Hermione, we need to talk about last night."

"What about it?" she asked.

"Well, what about us? Are you my girlfriend now?" he asked.

"I don't know, I don't think I've been asked yet," she replied playfully.

"Okay, well, Hermione?" he asked. "Will you be my girlfriend?"

"I'd love to," she answered.

Then Harry felt a weight drop into his stomach. "Wait, Hermione, how are we going to tell Ron?"

"I don't know," she said. "We'll think of something."

Just before they went back in the house, Harry received a bug bite, but was too happy to care. Miles away, Voldemort couldn't have been happier.

Harry awoke the next morning with a blinding headache. Moving his head sent jolts of pain through his entire body. He tried to get up, but his muscles refused to obey, and they ached like he had just run a marathon. He realized that his entire bed was drenched in sweat, and he felt really hot, but was getting chills.

Soon, he heard Hermione calling to him. "Harry, it's time for breakfast. Hurry up and come down here," she said.

Harry tried to reply that he was sick, but no words would come out of his mouth. His throat and mouth felt so dry that he could have spit cotton.

Hermione continued to call him, and Harry continued to try to answer. Eventually, he heard Hermione's footsteps coming up the stairs. She entered Harry's room with a look of slight anger on her face. She went over to Harry, but when she realized he was already awake, tried to pull him out of bed. "Harry, get up, what are you doing?" she asked. She received a small shock when she tried to touch him.

Finally, Harry found his voice. "Hermione," he croaked, "I think I'm really sick." And with that, he promptly passed out.

Harry awoke to find the Granger family peering over him. Although he was still weak, he had regained his voice.

"I need to get to the hospital," he said.

"Harry, we can't touch you," said Mr. Granger

Harry ignored him. "I need to get to St. Mungo's, it's the wizard hospital."

"All right," said Mr. Granger, "we'll take him to St. Mungo's. But how are we going to manage to get him there, we can't touch him."

"Why don't we carry him in his sheets?" suggested Hermione.

And so they did. They carried him out to the car in his sheets, and put him in the back seat of the family car. Harry drifted in and out of consciousness. Every once in a while, Harry would hear someone's voice. Sometimes it was Hermione giving directions, or Mr. Granger complaining about traffic. Then he stopped hearing their voices, and started hearing voices he didn't recognize.

Suddenly, everything went calm. He stopped hearing voices, he didn't feel his body ache, and he was rested. _They must have given me a sleeping draught_, he thought. And then he saw something that, had he been awake, would have made him question his sanity. _Sirius? What are you doing here?_

_I've come to help you, Harry. You've come down with an entirely new disease, and they can't find a cure for it. Only you can heal yourself. I'm here to try to teach you how._

_Heal myself? How can I heal myself when the greatest doctors in the wizarding world can't heal me?_

_The strength lies inside you, Harry. You have to learn how to use it, and how to control it. Close your eyes. Reach out with your mind. Can you feel your body? Do you see its currents, how it ebbs and flows?_

Harry concentrated. He probed with his mind. Suddenly, he could see his body as though from the outside. He saw the disease flowing through his veins. _I see it, Sirius. I can see my body. I see the disease coursing through me. But how will this help me?_

_You have to take the poison, and push it out of your body, one piece at a time._

And so he did. He took the toxins, and pushed them out of his body, through his pores. It was very difficult work, and many times he thought he couldn't do it, but Sirius was always there, helping and encouraging him. He would track down the disease, take the particle, and push it out. When finally he succeeded in removing it, he fell into blissful slumber, and he thought no more.

When Harry finally awoke, it was to the faces of Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Lupin, Tonks, Mad-Eye, and Dumbledore. They all had a look of complete relief on their face.

"What happened?" asked Harry. "Where am I?"

"You're in St. Mungo's, Harry," replied Dumbledore. "You came down with some unknown illness, and have been asleep for nearly a week."

"What did they do? How did they cure me?" asked Harry.

"They did nothing, Harry. They could not figure out what was wrong with you. You apparently have healed yourself," Dumbledore replied.

Then it all came back to him. Everything he had done; his meeting with Sirius, and how Sirius had helped him to heal himself. The recounting of his story was met with disbelief. They obviously believed it to be a delusion. Harry didn't argue with them. After all, they may have been right.

After another couple of days, Harry was released. Tonks, Mad-Eye, and Lupin escorted him home.

"Well, Potter, it seems you've cheated death once again, eh?" growled Mad-Eye, as he limped towards the car that would take them home.

"Guess I have, sir. Though, I don't know how. By all accounts, I should be dead by now, shouldn't I?" replied Harry.

"Aye, Potter, that you should. Don't get me wrong, we're glad you aren't, but you do have this unnatural ability to escape unscathed from just about anything that gets near you. Though, it does make it a bit easier to guard you."

_I'll bet it does_, thought Harry as he entered the car. _I'll bet it does_.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3- Friends Re-united**

As Harry opened the door to Number 12, Grimmauld Place, Hermione greeted him with the biggest hug he had ever received and he liked it.

"Alright, Hermione, let the man breathe," joked Ron, earning him an elbow in the ribs from Hermione as soon as she let Harry go. "Good to see you, mate, how ya holdin' up?"

"Pretty good," replied Harry, "as soon as I get my breath back." This earned Harry an elbow in the ribs as well.

"Harry, dear, so good to see you," said Mrs. Weasley sweetly, as she wrapped him in a tight embrace.

"Well, Harry, it's good to see you," said Mr. Weasley, as he shook Harry's hand.

"Come on Harry," said Hermione. "We'll show you to your room."

Harry followed them up the stairs, and to the end of the hall, to the room Harry would share with Ron. It was just as he had remembered it. Ron's clothes were strewn all over the room, along with various school and Quidditch books and supplies. It felt like home. His stuff, Harry saw, was already up here.

"I'm going to go to the kitchen to help Mrs. Weasley with dinner," said Hermione. "Why don't you boys get caught up?"

"Ok," they replied. Harry hated to see her leave, but he didn't want to be too obvious about his feelings for Hermione, so he kept quiet.

"So, Ron," said Harry, "what's been going on around here? Why haven't you sent me any letters or anything?"

"I'm sorry mate, but Dumbledore wouldn't let me even send a card to you. I don't know why," said Ron. "But other than that, we've mostly been sitting around. I've gotten to know Hermione a lot better. I think I might like her."

Harry's heart dropped to the pit of his stomach. _Oh my god_, he thought. _This can't be happening. And after the time he's been spending with Hermione, she probably likes him too. _Harry managed a smile.

"That's cool," he said. "Good thing you found someone, she's a pretty good catch."

"I know, she's something, isn't she?" replied Ron.

Harry and Ron made small talk until Hermione returned about an hour later.

"Dinner's ready you guys," she said. "Wash up and come down."

Dinner was an amazing affair. The tables groaned under the amount of food piled atop them. Fortunately Fred and George either hadn't helped, or hadn't felt the need to levitate the food to the table, so there were no major accidents. As soon as Harry looked around that table, his spirits fell. Sirius was notably absent. While he knew in his heart that he was gone, he still didn't want to believe it.

Everyone sat down to the amazing meal prepared by Mrs. Weasley and Hermione. There were dishes of all sorts, and about a dozen types of pie. Tonks was a source of constant laughter. She kept changing her face between bites, so you got a shock every time you looked at her. Harry was pleased to see Bill and Charlie there too, though Percy's absence was noticeable.

After about an hour of constant eating, Harry leaned back from the table not only contented, but completely stuffed. There was an Order meeting after dinner, so the children were all sent away. They were all too tired to disagree, so they went quietly. Hermione said that she was tired, leaving Harry and Ron alone again.

Harry and Ron changed for bed quickly and climbed into their beds. Harry was ready for a good night of sleep. Ron, it appeared, had other things in mind.

"I think Hermione really likes me, what do you think Harry?" asked Ron.

"I don't know," said Harry, "she seems to."

After about an hour of conversation of this manner, Harry was seething inside. He didn't think he could control his anger much longer, so he told Ron that he needed to get to sleep. Ron finally shut up, leaving Harry seething with thoughts of Ron and Hermione.

Harry awoke the next day rather troubled. He had no idea how he was going to break the news to Ron. He had to talk to Hermione; maybe she'd have an idea.

Harry and Ron walked downstairs to breakfast, Harry trying to figure out how to tell Ron, and Ron completely oblivious that anything was wrong. They were joined shortly by Ginny and Hermione. After breakfast, Harry thought it would be a good idea to get a game of Quiditch going. So Bill, Charlie, Ron, Fred, George, Ginny, and he all headed to the backyard. The entire time, all Ron could talk about was Hermione. Harry kept envisioning ripping Ron's head off. He knew he couldn't go on like this. He desperately needed to talk to Hermione.

After they got inside, Harry and Ron showered. After Harry got out, he asked Hermione if he could talk to her while Ron was in the shower. She agreed, apparently not noticing his nervousness. They went to Harry and Ron's room, and Harry turned to Hermione quickly.

"Hermione," he said, "there's a serious problem. Ron's been going on all day about how he likes you. How are we going to break it to him? I don't wanna hurt him. He's like my brother."

Hermione smiled. "Harry, I like Ron like a brother too. We're just going to have to figure it out somehow."

She gave him a hug just as Ron walked in. They immediately released each other, and Ron started laughing hysterically.

"Finally," he said. "I didn't know how much longer I could keep this up."

Harry and Hermione gave him a nonplussed look.

"What are you talking about?" they asked asked.

"Harry," he said, "I don't like Hermione. I've been acting like it all this time to try to get you to admit how you felt for her. Everyone else knew it, but you're just so darn thick. Not to mention, there's been a pot going since about 3rd year as to when you two would get together. I guessed this summer. Since you too seemingly hadn't gotten together after spending a couple weeks together, I decided that desperate measures were called for."

He laughed again, and this time Harry and Hermione joined him. Harry couldn't believe it. He had never felt as happy as he did at that moment.

The week flew by rather quickly. Harry soon learned that Ron had a thing for Luna Lovegood, though he honestly couldn't figure out why. She had always seemed nice enough, but she was rather strange. Of course, what could you expect from a girl whose father is the editor of the _Quibbler_?

Before he knew it, it was Harry's birthday. When he woke up, he almost didn't remember. Neither, it seemed, had anyone else. Hermione greeted him that morning with a hug and kiss on the cheek as had become her custom, but made no mention of his birthday. Ron didn't say anything either, nor did anyone else in the house. Harry didn't think much of it. He had spent 11 years without having his birthday remembered, though it wasn't like his friends to forget.

The trio spent the day with Mrs. Weasley, helping her clean the house, which had become quite dirty since Sirius had died. Fortunately, this time around they were only facing dirt, instead of some nether creature. Kreecher died shortly after Sirius, but did not get his head on a plaque like he had always hoped. Instead he had a rather unceremonious burial in the backyard.

After lunch, the boys and Ginny all went outside for a game of Quidditch. It was a great game, lessened only by the fact that it started raining halfway through, leaving them all drenched to the bone. They enjoyed it nonetheless. The gang dragged themselves in around 5:00, and got cleaned for dinner.

When Harry descended the stairs to the kitchen, he was met by a great sight. It seemed that his birthday had not been forgotten after all. There was a large banner reading: "Happy Birthday Harry" along with large amounts of streamers, balloons, and various other party items. Mrs. Weasley had truly outdone herself with this feast. There was turkey, ham, chicken, beef brisket, and as many types of food as there were people to eat it.

This was quite possibly Harry's best birthday. Mad-Eye gave him _101 Curses, Jinxes and Hexes_. From Lupin, he got_ The Ultimate Guide to Defensive Spells_. Tonks gave him _The Wizard's Guide to Shape Shifting_. Fred and George gave him a sack of goodies from their new store. Ron, funnily enough, gave him a year's subscription to the _Quibbler_. The rest of the Weasleys gave him a large assortment of treats, both homemade and those purchased at Honeyduke's. And finally, probably his favorite present was _The Auror's Handbook_ from Hermione.

Dumbledore showed up about half-way through the party. He brought a present of a different kind: Sirius's will. He didn't say anything about it until after Harry had opened up his presents. Once he was done, Dumbledore spoke up.

"I think this would be an appropriate time to read Sirius's will," he said. He gave Harry a knowing look. "I think this may be Harry's greatest gift."

Hermione wrapped her arms around Harry to comfort him.

"The will reads:

To Harry James Potter, I leave the house at Number 12 Grimmauld Place. I also leave him that money in my Gringott's account which is not dealt with here, and any stocks, bonds, and real estate in my possession. To the Weasley Family, I leave the sum of 500,000 galleons. To Ms. Hermione Granger, I leave the sum of 100,000 galleons. To the Longbottom Family, I leave the sum of 250,000 galleons. To Ms. Luna Lovegood, I leave the sum of 125,000 galleons. And to my dear friend Remus Lupin, I leave the sum of 200,000 galleons, and the invitation to stay in this house with Harry, until such time as you see fit to leave it.

Harry sat there in a state of shock. The house was his. And he was quite sure that he had just become a rather rich man, as well as all of his friends.

"Professor Dumbledore, sir," Harry asked, "exactly how much money has he left me?"

"Well, Harry, while we're not sure of the value of his stocks, bonds, and real estate, the money in his Gringott's account, with his other leavings taken into account, now totals in excess of 8,000,000 galleons," replied Dumbledore with a smile.

_8 million galleons_, Harry thought to himself. He had indeed become a rich man.

"Well, Professor Dumbledore, I believe there is something I can do now. I would like to donate the use of this house to the Order of the Phoenix, until Voldemort has been destroyed."

"And as head of the Order, I graciously accept your offer, Harry," replied Dumbledore.

Everyone cheered. They partied into the wee hours of the night, drinking butterbeer, playing games, and in general enjoying themselves. Harry was sure that this was one of the happiest days of his life.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: Old Friends and New Challenges**

Harry awoke the next morning the happiest he could remember. Life was good. He had found the love of his life, Hermione, he had just celebrated the best birthday of his life, and to top it all off, he had just become a very rich man. Yes, life was indeed good.

Waking Ron up proved to be a much more difficult task than he had at first thought.

"Ron," he said, "get up, it's time for breakfast."

Ron snorted and turned over.

"Ron," he said slightly louder, "get up, or we're going to miss breakfast."

He still got no response from Ron.

"RONALD WEASLEY, GET OUT OF THAT BED IMMEDIATELY!" roared Harry.

Ron sat up immediately. "Okay, Mum, I'm up," he said rather tiredly.

Harry burst into laughter. Ron just looked at him, and finally started laughing himself. It was just too funny. They dressed quickly to find Hermione, Ginny, and….Neville and Luna?

_What are they doing here? _thought Harry. Just then, Luna ran over to Ron and gave him a hug. Ron immediately turned three shades of red. The rest of the group burst into laughter. This caused Luna to blush the shade of Ron's hair, but the soon joined in the laughter.

"Hey Neville, Luna," said Harry. "What are you guys doing here?"

"I have no idea," replied Neville. "I just got this letter from Dumbledore, and he told me to come."

"Same here," said Luna. "I have no idea why I'm here."

The six then settled down to eat breakfast. They talked about their summers, what they had been doing, and life in general. Harry and Hermione revealed their relationship to the group, none of whom seemed surprised.

"I've been waiting for this since the end of third year," said Neville. "Anyone with a pair of eyes can tell that you two were meant for each other."

Harry and Hermione blushed at this, but were pleased nonetheless. The events in the Department of Mysteries were carefully skirted around, for which Harry was very pleased. He just wasn't sure whether he could talk about it yet. Eventually the conversation returned to why Luna and Neville were there. About this time, Dumbledore walked into the kitchen.

"Good morning, all," said Dumbledore pleasantly. "I would imagine that you are all wondering why Luna and Neville are here. The answer is simple: training. The six of you are now at the top of Voldemort's "To Kill" list. You're actions at the Department of Mysteries at the end of last year have ensured that. Not to mention that fact that you make a rather formidable team."

They all looked at each other in amazement. They were getting trained to fight against Voldemort. They could hardly wait.

"You're trainings will be thus," said Dumbledore. "You will be getting animagus training from Tonks and Professor McGonagall. You will receive Defense training from Moody, and you will receive hand-to-hand and weapons training from Kingsley. Any questions?"

"When do we start?" they all asked in unison.

"Today, if you're willing," replied Dumbledore. "Oh, and before I forget," added Dumbledore, "I have your O.W.L. results."

The happiness Harry had been feeling left immediately, to be replaced by a feeling of complete and utter dread. Dumbledore handed each of them their results, and left immediately.

Harry took his envelope, and with trembling hands, opened it. It read:

Dear Mr. Potter:

Below are your O.W.L. results. Good luck.

Defense against the Dark Arts

Written: O

Practical: O

Overall: O

Transfiguration:

Written: A

Practical: O

Overall: E

Charms:

Written: A

Practical: E

Overall: A

Divination:

Written: P

Practical: P

Overall: P

History of Magic:

Written: P

Practical: P

Overall: P

Herbology:

Written: E

Practical: E

Overall: E

Care of Magical Creatures:

Written: O

Practical: O

Overall: O

Astronomy:

Written: A

Practical: A

Overall: A

Potions:

Written: E

Practical: E

Overall: E

Grading for O.W.L. results is as follows: O- 3 O.W.L.s, E-2 O.W.L.s A-1 O.W.L. P- 0 O.W.L.s

For your performance, you have received a total of 14 O.W.L.s. Congratulations, and good luck for your future.

Harry's heart dropped when he read his potions score. While it was really good, it wasn't good enough. Snape absolutely refused to let anyone into his N.E.W.T. potion class who had not received an "O" on their O.W.L.s, and Harry needed N.E.W.T. Potions to become an Auror.

_Well, my life's dream has just gone down the toilet,_ he thought. _Oh well, there are still plenty of other things for me to do._

"I can't believe it!" exclaimed Ron. "I got 10 O.W.L.s"

"Awesome, Ron" said Harry, less than enthusiastically. "That's great!"

"So, Harry," said Ron, "what did you get."

"Yeah," agreed everyone.

"I got fourteen," said Harry. Everyone looked impressed.

"So Hermione," asked Harry, "how badly did you shame us?"

Hermione blushed. "I got twenty."

Everyone sitting at the table gaped. _20 O.W.L.s? That was unheard of. Of course, this is Hermione, so you kind of expected it. But still, 20 O.W.L.s was unbelievable._

"I've always said you should have been in Ravenclaw," said an awestruck Luna.

Neville finally spoke up. "I only got nine," he said. "Gran is gonna have my head for this. I should have studied more, but I always get nervous during tests."

"Don't sweat it, Neville," replied Ron. "Fred and George only got three O.W.L.s a piece."

That seemed to cheer him up. "Well, gang," said Harry "I guess we'd better get to training."

The six then descended to the basement, to find McGonagall and Tonks waiting for them.

"Hey everyone!" said Tonks cheerfully.

"I assume you all know why you're here?" asked McGonagall.

They nodded their agreement.

"Well then, let's get started," said Tonks. "The first thing that you need to do is figure out what animal it is you'll become, and learn all you can about that animal. Now, close your eyes, and let your mind wander."

The six did as they were told. They closed their eyes, and tried to figure out what animal they would become. _What will I be, _thought Harry? _It'll probably be some kind of snake, but what will it be._ Suddenly, a picture flashed into his mind. It almost looked as though it was a flying snake.

"Okay," said Tonks. "Would anyone care to share their animal?"

"Sure," said Harry. "I'm not exactly sure what it is though. It looks like it's a flying snake.

Tonks and McGonagall looked at each other. McGonagall finally spoke. "Well, Harry," she said. "It appears that your animal is a drake. It's an ancient creature, very powerful. It should suit you well. Anyone else?"

Ron answered next. "I think I'm a fire crab," he said. Tonks and McGonagall looked doubly impressed. So far they had heard two very difficult animagus forms.

"I think my animal is a lioness," said Hermione. Tonks and McGonagall were beside themselves. This was a very powerful group indeed.

"I'm a treeling," said Neville.

"I'm an eagle," said Luna.

"I'm a fox," said Ginny.

Tonks and McGonagall looked at each other again. This was without a doubt the most powerful group of young wizards in the world.

"Well, well," said Tonks. "It certainly appears as though we'll have our hands full. Ok Harry, why don't you try it first?"

Harry stood in the center of everyone. "Concentrate on your animal," said McGonagall. "Imagine yourself becoming it." Harry did so. Then it started. He felt himself growing scales, and his body hardening. He felt himself elongating. Then, he suddenly fell to the ground, exhausted.

"Very good, Harry, you got pretty close," said Tonks. "Take a rest. Hermione, you're next.

Hermione stood and walked to the center. She made it about half-way through her transformation. Ron was next, followed by Ginny, then Luna, and finally Neville. They all did well, but not as well as Harry.

"Well," said McGonagall, "you all did extremely well. You all have very difficult animals, and have done very well with them. I'll see you all tomorrow, same time."

Everyone got up to leave. "I'll be right there," said Harry. He walked up to McGonagall. "Professor," he said, "I just wanted to tell you that I didn't qualify for N.E.W.T Potions, and thank you for your help." He hung his head. "I guess I just wasn't meant to be an Auror."

"Now, Potter, you're not going to give up that easily, now are you?" she asked.

Harry looked at her in surprise. "What other choice do I have?" he asked.

"I will give you tutoring in Potions so that you can take the class," she replied. "Meet me tomorrow night at 10."

Harry was ecstatic. "Thanks a lot Professor," he said, and left considerably happier. His happiness was not to last long. He entered the attic to find a scowling Moody.

"Potter, you're late. Why are you late?" he growled.

"Sorry, sir, I had to talk to Professor McGonagall about something," replied Harry.

"That's no excuse. Next time you're late, there will be consequences. Now," he said, turning to the rest of the group, "today we will be learning blocking charms. Do you know any?"

Hermione's hand shot in the air. "Yes, Ms. Granger," said Moody.

"Well, we know Protego, the reflecting shield," she said.

"That's very good. Reckon you learned that in your D.A. classes, eh?" he said.

They nodded their agreement. "Well," he said, "since you already know that one, I think it's time to teach you a new one. As you know, some curses can go through that shield. There is a more powerful one which I will teach you: Protego Media. Protego Media will stop the vast majority of curses and hexes. Split into groups and practice it."

Ron teamed with Luna, Harry with Hermione, and Neville with Luna.

"Expeliarmus!" cried Harry.

"Protego Media!" countered Hermione. The spell bounced off of her, and struck Harry, disarming him.

Harry got up and looked around. Neville and Ron were both on the ground as well. "Expeliarmus!" he roared.

Hermione countered with Protego Media. "Protego Media!" cried Harry. The spell rebounded again, striking and disarming Hermione.

"Very good, Mr. Potter," said Moody. "Look here, everyone. Harry is the first to reflect the reflected attack. A very good surprise move, Potter. Remember, Ms. Granger, CONSTANT VIGILANCE!" He looked at his watch. "Well, I think that's all the time we have. Report to the cellar for weapons training with Kingsley. Good day all," he said, and with that, left them.

"Whew!" said Harry, "that was a lesson. Let's get going."

The five followed Harry down to the cellar, to find Kingsley awaiting them. "Ok, Everyone here?" he asked. They nodded. "Good. You are here for weapons and hand-to-hand training. We're not going to focus on any particular weapon, except for Harry." He pulled out Godric Gryffindor's sword. "Harry will be using this. You've seen it before, right Potter?" Harry nodded. "Okay, today we'll be practicing with the sword." He passed the Sword of Gryffindor to Harry. "Pair up."

They paired up in the same way as they had at Defense training. For the next hour, Kingsley taught them the basics of sword fighting. He taught them parries, thrusts, and other basic moves, as well as basic sword strategy. Harry seemed to be a natural with the sword. No one but Kingsley was able to get to him. After an hour of hot, sweaty, work, the group was hungry.

"Let's get to dinner," said Ron. "I'm starving!" Everyone laughed at this. They couldn't argue with him though. They were all starved. And so they all followed him into the dining room, where Mrs. Weasley had prepared yet another wonderful dinner. They all sat down and enjoyed the meal. Harry sat next to Hermione, Ron next to Luna, and Neville next to Ginny. After the delicious meal, they all went to bed, completely exhausted.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5-Revelations**

Harry awoke the next morning completely refreshed. He grabbed a change of clothes, and showered. When he emerged from the shower, he noticed that neither Ron nor Neville were up yet. Since they only had two beds in the room, they had decided to cycle through the beds and the floor. Neville had slept on the ground last night. Harry decided to wake Neville first, as he was sure that would be immensely easier then waking Ron.

He knelt down next to him and shook him gently. "Neville, get up," he said. Neville's eyes fluttered open.

"What time is it?" he asked.

"It's about 9:00," replied Harry. "Come on. Hurry up and get ready, I need your help to wake up Ron." So Neville got up and hurriedly got ready. When he was finished, they walked over to the side of the bed. They both took turns shaking Ron and telling him to get up, but it was to no avail.

"Hey, Neville," said Harry with a mischievous grin on his face. "I've got an idea. Follow me." Neville followed Harry to the bathroom, where they filled a glass with ice cold water. They quietly snuck back into the room. They were relieved to find Ron still asleep. Snickering softly to themselves, they crept next to the bed. Harry held up his fingers. "3…2…1…GO!" Neville splashed the cup of water right across Ron's face. His reply echoed the house.

"HARRY, NEVILLE, YOU GREAT PRATS! I'LL GET YOU FOR THAT!" And with that he chased them down the hall and into the dining room. It was just at that moment that Mrs. Weasley bustled in from the kitchen.

"What's all the commotion about?" she demanded.

"Well," started Harry, barely suppressing a grin. "We couldn't get Ron to wake up, so we splashed a glass of water into his face."

Mrs. Weasley looked over at Ron, and started to laugh. "That's quite understandable, dears," she said. "Now Ron, why don't you go upstairs and get dressed, and join us for breakfast." Ron looked quite disgruntled, but left without argument. As soon as he was out of earshot, Harry and Neville burst into laughter.

"You should have seen his face," laughed Harry through his tears. "Priceless!" Neville still hadn't regained the capacity for speech. He just rolled around on the ground in fits of hysteria. After they had both regained their composure, they sat down at the table and started on breakfast.

They were joined shortly by Ron, who was followed quickly by Hermione, Luna, and Ginny. They all chatted animatedly through breakfast, until it was time to begin training. As they had done yesterday, they began with Animagus training. They walked down to the basement, and were once again greeted by Tonks and Professor McGonagall.

"Morning, everyone!" said Tonks cheerfully. "How do you all feel?"

"Pretty good," they said.

"Wonderful, wonderful, now lets get started, shall we?" said McGonagall. "Well, you all know what to do. Harry, why don't you start us off?"

Harry nodded his agreement, and walked to the center of the group. He closed his eyes, and concentrated on turning into a drake. He imagined the wings sprouting from his back, his neck growing longer. He imagined the scaled growing over his body, the tail coming out of his lower back. Suddenly, it stopped. He looked down, and realized that he had done it. He gave his wings a feeble flap, but they didn't seem to want to move much. Then, overcome with weariness, he collapsed on the floor once again.

"Well done, Harry! Well done!" applauded Tonks. Everyone else was also cheering him. He blushed under the attention.

"Spectacular, Mr. Potter, absolutely spectacular!" said McGonagall. "You've achieved a very difficult transformation after only two tries. Wonderful!" she beamed. Harry looked around, and saw Hermione beaming at him too. He grinned sheepishly at her. He returned to his seat, and was immediately pounded on the back by both Ron and Neville.

"Great job, mate!" said Ron.

"Knew you could do it!" said Neville.

Hermione leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "You were wonderful," she whispered in his ear. This caused him to blush even more, but he was very pleased.

It was Hermione's turn now, and she looked very anxious. Harry leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "You'll do great," he whispered. She beamed at him, and looked noticeably less nervous.

She stood and walked to the center, and closed her eyes. After a moment, she started to change. Her shape hunched over, and her legs began to shorten. The only human part left on her was her face, when she collapsed from exhaustion.

"Well, done, Ms. Granger, well done," said McGonagall.

Hermione returned to her seat, as Ron stood and walked to the center. He, too, got very close, but was left with human hands, feet, and head when he collapsed. Those remaining retained more of their human form in varying degrees. Finally, it was time for lunch, and they were all exhausted.

"Come on you guys, lets go eat," said Ron. "I'm starving."

"Just wait a minute, I've gotta do something," said Harry. He turned to McGonagall. "I just wanted to say thank-you, Professor. See you at 10?" She nodded.

"You're quite welcome Harry. Now you'd better get going, I'm afraid Mr. Weasley is about to faint from hunger."

Ron blushed. "Alright, let's go get some food," said Harry. The six tramped up the stairs to the kitchen, to find another wonderful meal prepared by Mrs. Weasley. She bustled into the kitchen.

"Well, eat up you lot, you look starved!" she said cheerily. They didn't need any more prompting. The dug into their food with gusto, and didn't bother to speak for about 10 minutes. Finally, Ron spoke up.

"What was that about with McGonagall?" he asked.

"Oh, that," said Harry. "Well, I didn't get an "O" in my O.W.L. Potions. Snape won't let me in his N.E.W.T Potions without it, but I need N.E.W.T. Potions to be an Auror. So, Professor McGonagall is going to tutor me in potions so I can take the class."

Ron just sat there with his mouth hanging open. "You mean you actually WANT to take Potions again? I thought you of all people would want to get out of that class as fast as you could."

"Didn't you hear him?" asked Hermione. "He needs it to be an Auror. I think it's good that he's taking some initiative in his academics," she said proudly, giving Harry a smile.

With that, Harry pushed back from the table. He glanced at the clock, and almost fell out of his chair.

"Come on guys," he said hurriedly. "We're late for Defense training with Moody." Everyone leapt out of their seats and scrambled up the stairs into the attic. Moody, of course, was already there.

"Do you realize," he growled, "that you are 10 minutes late?"

"Yes, sir," said Harry hastily. "We were having lunch, and the time just got away from us."

"Well, Potter, as I'm assuming you're the cause of the groups lateness, you're going to have to stay after you're lesson."

"But sir…" Harry protested.

"Silence," snapped Moody. "You'll stay after lessons, and there will be no more discussion of it. Now," he said, turning towards the class, "as you all have mastered the Protego Media charm, I believe it's time to move up a step. I am now going to teach you the most powerful shield, the Protego Maximus. Now, I'd be very surprised it any of you mastered this spell today. However, for those who can, it's a very powerful tool. It will block any spell, aside from the Unforgivable Curses, and not only reflect it, but make it more powerful. The only drawback is that it draws power from you. Therefore, the more powerful the curse it is blocking, the more energy it will drain. You can also change the amount of enhancement the reflected spell receives by changing the amount of energy you put into it. That kind of control, however, takes a lot of practice. Now, split into pairs and practice it."

Harry and Hermione paired together and went into a corner. "Expeliarmus!" roared Hermione.

"Protego Maximus," cried Harry. The spell, however, didn't work. He was thrown back and disarmed.

"Potter!" roared Moody. "What on earth do you call that? You didn't slow the curse at all! That was pathetic! Try again!"

Harry was seething. Moody was making him look like an idiot. Harry looked at Hermione and nodded. "Expeliarmus!" she cried.

"Protego Maximus!" Again, the spell didn't work. If anything, it made the spell that Hermione was doing even more powerful. He flew back into the wall, and knocked some loose bricks out.

"Potter, get over here!" yelled Moody. "I don't know what you're doing, but it sure as hell isn't what you've been told to do."

Harry walked over to Moody. "You'll practice with me now," he said. By this point, Harry was almost shaking with rage. He was barely thinking coherently. All he knew was that he wanted to hurt the man in front of him. "Expeliarmus!" cried Moody.

"Protego Maximus!" countered Harry. At that point, all the rage, depression, sadness, frustration, and emotion that Harry had felt the entire summer burst out of him. Harry saw the curse bounce back towards a very surprised looking Moody, and then he blacked out.

When Harry awoke, it was too the relieved looks of Lupin, Hermione, and Dumbledore.

"What happened?" he asked.

They all look at each other, when Lupin finally spoke up. "I think you're going to have to see it for yourself." Hermione helped Harry stand, and walked him up to the attic. The sight that met his eyes was astounding. An entire wall of the attic was missing, leaving only dust and some bricks lying on the floor. Harry looked through the hole, and saw yet another hole in the side of the house next to theirs.

"I…I did this?" he stuttered.

"I'm afraid you did, Harry," said Dumbledore.

"W-wait, what about Moody?" he asked. "Oh my god, I sent him through these walls didn't I?" They all nodded. "Is he okay, where is he?"

"Mad-eye is at St. Mungo's," replied Lupin. Those words made what felt like a lead wait drop into his stomach.

"I…I need to see him," said Harry.

Dumbledore smiled at him. He picked up a brick and pointed his wand at it. "Portus" he muttered. "Here, take hold of this." They all reached out for the brick. Just before he touched it, Hermione took Harry's hand and gave it a squeeze. Then Harry felt the familiar tug behind his navel, and he was whisked away.

They arrived rather shakily in the lobby of St. Mungo's. Without bothering to ask, they swiftly followed Dumbledore up the stairs to the fourth floor, Spell Damage. They quickly found Moody's ward. Harry gasped as they walked in and found Moody. He looked terrible. He had cuts and scrapes all over him as well as bruises and undoubtedly some broken bones.

"What's wrong with him?" asked Harry. "Why hasn't he been healed yet?"

"Well," said Dumbledore, "Moody never has trusted doctors. He won't let them near him."

"I guess I'm going to have to do it then," said Harry. Everyone stared at him, but he didn't pay any attention to it. He walked over to Moody's bedside and placed his hands on his chest. He closed his eyes, and probed through Moody's body. He gasped despite himself at the damage he found. Aside from the external damage, there were several broken ribs, a broken arm and leg, and rather severe internal bleeding. Harry started with the bleeding. He channeled energy through the organs, pulling them back together and mending the tears.

Then he moved to the broken bones, and slowly mended those, channeling still more energy through them, until they were fixed. Finally, Harry healed the cuts, scrapes, and bruises. Harry opened his eyes, and saw everyone smiling at him, including Moody who he thought he heard say "Just as I suspected." And then for the second time that day, Harry promptly passed out.

When Harry awoke, it was to the same faces he had become accustomed to awaking to. Lupin, Dumbledore, and Hermione were smiling down at him, though this time with the addition of Moody.

"So where am I this time, Professor?" he asked.

"You're back at Grimmauld Place," he replied.

"Okay, Professor, what's going on with me?" he asked more sternly then he meant to.

"Well, Harry, I believe that that is going to take some explaining. Are you well enough?" Harry nodded. "Well then, let's retire to my office, shall we? A bit more private I dare say." He held out a teacup. Harry reached out and took hold of it, and felt a familiar tug behind his navel.

When he arrived rather shakily in Dumbledore's office, Harry glanced around in awe. No matter how many times Harry visited this office, it always seemed to have an aura of power about it that left him speechless. Dumbledore took a seat behind his desk. "Please sit down," he said as he conjured a very comfortable chair for Harry to sit in. Harry took a seat and looked at Dumbledore expectantly. Dumbledore took a deep breath and began.

"Okay Harry, I understand that all of this is going to be very new to you, but please wait until I am finished to ask any questions. Is that all right?" Harry nodded. "Okay then, well. As you know, there are wizards of varying powers. However, for those wizards who posses exceptional magical abilities, a series of names have been developed. They are Magi, Arch-Magi, Warlocks, and Sorcerers. Of this group, Magi are the least powerful, and Sorcerers are the most powerful."

"No one is born as any one of these things. They are, however, born with enough raw magical energy, that once controlled, will make you one of these. Therefore, very few of these kinds of wizards are ever born, and fewer still ever grow into their full magical power."

"Now I suppose I should give you some idea of what all of these are, so I'll start with Magi. Magi are fairly powerful wizards, though they are rather common. However, as I said, very few people ever reach the level of control to reach their full potential. Magi have the ability to channel their energy through any object. This means that they do not need a wand. They can channel their energy through their hands, or through a weapon. It is for this reason that many Magi become very skilled swordsmen."

"Arch-magi are very similar to Magi, only slightly more powerful. They too can channel energy through objects, but they can also impart a portion of their power to a certain object, where it will remain to be called upon by whosoever finds that artifact. For this reason, many Arch-magi become excellent craftsmen, and have also been called Enchanters."

"That brings us to Warlocks. Warlocks possess all of the traits of Arch-Magi and Magi, but again are slightly more powerful. They also possess the aptitude for a certain skill, such as Banishing. There have been three warlocks in the last couple of centuries: Grindewald, Tom Riddle, and myself. Grindewald possessed the ability of Banishing, which is the ability to destroy the magical ability of another. However, in order to do so, he had to have greater magical power than the one he was banishing. This proved to be his downfall. Tom Riddle has the ability of Possession, or the ability to literally possess the mind and body of another, but again, he had to have greater magical power then the one he was attempting to possess. He developed the Imperius Curse to give all of his followers a similar ability, but it is not the same."

"I myself posses the ability of Animation, which is the ability to bend inanimate objects to my will. You witnessed this power during my duel with Tom Riddle at the Ministry of Magic last year. I consider myself lucky, as I do not have to worry about not being powerful enough to use my ability, as I have yet to meet an inanimate object more powerful than myself."

"Now we come to Sorcerers, the most rare and powerful group of wizards. There have only been a total of five Sorcerers in history. Merlin was the first, followed by Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Sorcerers, like Warlocks, each possess certain abilities, though theirs are much more powerful than those of Warlocks. Merlin possessed the ability of Summoning, by which he could summon anything he wanted, and give it whatever powers he deemed fit. Gryffindor, due to his great bravery, loyalty, and love of others, possessed the power of Protecting. With this power, he could place unbreakable protections upon any person, place, or object. In fact, it is these protections that still guard Hogwarts to this day."

"Hufflepuff, due to her great love of others and charity to all, possessed the power of healing. It was said that her healing powers were similar to that of Unicorn blood, though without the half life. It was said that she could bring a person back who was an inch from death. Ravenclaw, ever knowledgeable, had the ability of foresight. It is akin to the ability of Seers, but it can be turned on and off. Finally, Slytherin, due to his shrewdness and sense of self-worth, had the ability of Shape-Shifting. He could change not only his appearance, but his entire body structure, and not only of himself but of anything and anyone around him."

"Excuse me professor, but what exactly does this have to do with me?" asked Harry.

Dumbledore smiled down at Harry, and with the unmistakable glint of pride in his eye, said, "Because, Harry, you are a Sorcerer."


End file.
